Flu Vaccine

[Stefanie (Ziba)]

Thanks for your response, Colormist. I was planning to keep his diet 100% safe (he usually has oats but I am thinking of leaving that out a few days prior) and give him cornstarch with his amino acid formula before and after the vax and continue to do so afterward. I have tapioca dextrose and plan to bring that with me. I can ask if the peds office has dextrose IVs on hand but I doubt it and the closest hospital is not a children's hospital and has a terrible reputation (they had no clue how to help me when I broke my nose last year).
I wonder how the sugars being injected into the muscle may have a different (perhaps delayed?) effect than when it is ingested. I am just terrified of sorbitol in any amount. He only weighs 42 lb. and I don't want him to go hypo, but as his geneticist said, "If he gets the measles, he will wind up in the hospital and it will be a whole lot worse".

[rysmom14]

Hi Ziba!

We had been tracking Ryan's liver number for months until they came down to a decent level and we felt comfortable going for the MMR. he had all his shots as a baby before he was diagnosed, but it seems like that was all a blur.

he had no reaction at all. I made sure he ate before hand and had milk and cheese and crackers for the way home. but I even tested his sugar and it stayed normal, and didn't say he felt sick or anything. I was also watching for a reaction or symptoms for the few days afterwards and I still didn't see anything.

The Dr. wanted us to go for follow up labs a month after the MMR, but I declined. In my mind, I knew there was sugar in the vaccine, but he needed to get it, and if his liver took a hit there isn't anything they can do about it, so I know it would be more stress for everyone have them drawn.

I hope Remy does ok with the vaccine. and I know my thinking was the same as your Dr. I would rather take the hit now with the vaccine, then risk the alternative.

Let us know how things go!

[colormist]

Oh man, I didn't even think of how much more awful it would be if he was dealing with hospital IVs, hospital food, and medications for measles. Yeesh.

Please let us know how he does and what your process was! It'll help other parents out there who are waffling on the same indecision.

[Stefanie (Ziba)]

Rysmom,

Thank you so much for the update. Remy will be getting the MMR (not MMRV which contains the Varicella/Chickenpox antigens and has a higher rate of febrile seizures). I am SO relieved to hear that Ryan had no immediate reaction and no long-term adverse reaction. My plan is to feed him right before and right after with protein, fat and carbs and to keep him away from crowds in the few days leading up to it (so that he doesn't come down with something and then I will flip out thinking it is a rxn to the MMR vax).

I am so grateful for your input. And, yes, Colormist, the thought of him getting the Measles (or any other serious illness) and winding up in the hospital is far more frightening.

[Stefanie (Ziba)]

I am also planning to get his titers checked with his October blood draw. The second dose of the MMR is not necessary for 9% of the population. 2-5% of MMR recipients do not produce an acceptable antibody response from the first dose, and instead of testing titers, they just give everyone a second dose. I am all for protection but not for unecessary exposure, so I would like his titers checked to see if he is in the 95-98% who produce the necessary response from just one shot.

[Stefanie (Ziba)]

I wish I could get the Measles vax for Remy by itself, but they discontinued manufacture of the individual vaccines in 2009.
Rubella is only a concern for adult women of childbearing age, yet that is the component of the MMR that has the sorbitol in it:

The growth medium for measles and mumps is Medium 199 (a buffered salt solution containing
vitamins and amino acids and supplemented with fetal bovine serum) containing SPGA (sucrose,
phosphate, glutamate, and recombinant human albumin) as stabilizer and neomycin.
The growth medium for rubella is Minimum Essential Medium (MEM) [a buffered salt solution
containing vitamins and amino acids and supplemented with fetal bovine serum] containing recombinant
human albumin and neomycin. Sorbitol and hydrolyzed gelatin stabilizer are added to the individual virus
harvests.

[Stefanie (Ziba)]

Update:

He had the MMR last Thursday (nearly 9 days ago). While I am still looking out for those adverse reactions that could happen in the first few weeks to anyone who gets the vax, he did better than I expected with the shot from a metabolic standpoint. He did seem off for 24 hours afterward, said he was "headsick", had a bit of tummy pain. I kept him hydrated and strictly fructose free and he was fine the next day. He did not go hypo. Maybe because the sorbitol did not get ingested, it was different, because if he had taken a bite of a banana, he would have puked, but this just seemed to make him feel "weird" for a day.

[rysmom14]

Such good news! Im glad you guys are past it and it seems he did well.

[hfimomof3]

Glad to hear it went well.